Dick presided over one of the guns, Gurt at the other, as both of them, having been in the English navy, knew all the necessary business for loading, adjusting the sight, and firing the cannon. The Demarch’s finances had not run to the expense of importing cannon of the new type, so these brass guns were somewhat old-fashioned; still, loaded with grape-shot, they were very effective when fired, especially when sighted with considerable science by the old men-of-war’s-men.
Up came the enemy, shrieking like fiends, and broken into irregular bands, dotting the green slope with patches of blue topped by the red of their Turkish headgear. Dick, who was to fire first, waited till they were within an easy distance, and then put the lighted match to the touch-hole of his cannon. There was a roar as the deadly grape-shot splashed among the advancing crowd, and then a shriek of rage as the column reeled, wavered, and for the moment paused. Encouraged by Alcibiades, they still advanced, only to be mown down by the dozen with the discharge of Gurt’s cannon, upon which, dismayed at the carnage, they retreated down the hill in confusion, leaving the ground thick with the slain.
On seeing this, the sailors set up a hearty British cheer, in which all joined but Justinian, who smiled grimly at the effective work done by his guns. Alcibiades was stamping with rage, for his little scheme of firing the barricade, as on the previous occasion, was quite impracticable, owing to those deadly muzzles which gaped through the palisade.
With considerable caution, however, he scattered his men so as to avert the danger of huddled masses being cut down by the grape-shot, and kept up a continuous fire at the frowning front of the battery. The Melnosians returned the fire with their Martini-Henry rifles, and managed to pick off a few of the sharp-shooters, while, protected by their gabions, they managed to escape without the loss of a single man; for the bullets either buried themselves with a dull thud in the sand-bags or else went ripping above their heads to flatten themselves harmlessly against the lava walls of the pass.
“They can’t last long against our cannon, uncle,” said Maurice, who was watching Dick reloading his gun; “that first dash has lost them nearly twenty men.”
“It will take some time to polish off two hundred,” replied Justinian, who had his glass to his eyes; “besides, Alcibiades has some scheme in his head. All this sharp-shooting is done to divert our attention. I thought so!”
“What’s up now?”
“He’s bringing up a field-piece to that hill.”
“The deuce!” cried Maurice, hastily focussing his glasses. “We must silence that. Dick, do you think you could bring one of the guns to bear on that hill to the right?”
Dick, after some consideration, thought he could, and did; for, with the assistance of his sailors, he wheeled round the gun-carriage to an angle of thirty-five degrees, so as to bring the muzzle of his piece in a direct line with the conical-shaped mound up which the enemy were dragging their battery. This hill, which was slightly to the right of the pass, would have been utilized long before for his guns by any able commander; but not until the loss of twenty men had taught Alcibiades experience, did he think of making use of the position. The crest of the mound was slightly lower than the palisade; but, by depressing the muzzle of his gun, Dick got a fair opportunity of disabling the battery of the enemy. Owing to their numbers, they soon succeeded in dragging the field-piece up to the top, and, placing it in position, raised the mouth slightly, so as to aim at the upper part of the barricade. Just as they were preparing to fire, Dick, who had loaded with round shot, discharged his cannon, and the great mass of iron went hurtling viciously through the air.